Berlin (AP) – Neven Subotic looks back on his time as a professional footballer with great self-criticism.
“Looking back, I’m ashamed that I lived so pointlessly at the time,” said the 33-year-old in an interview with the “Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung”. The former Serbian international won two German championships and one cup with Borussia Dortmund, and he has also had fun in his career. But he has neither found lasting friendships nor developed personally or done anything he is proud of: “At the end of my life it’s not just about whether I had fun.”
Subotic, who is about to announce the official end of his career, has been involved in his own foundation since he was 22. To date, almost 500 wells have been built, giving around 180,000 people access to water. For this social commitment he had to justify himself in football. “If a player sits in front of his Playstation until late at night, that’s still considered pretty normal. But when you’re involved with things other than football, some people think that performance suffers,” Subotic said in an interview with ” General Frankfurt Sunday newspaper”.
If he played badly, it was quickly said that he had too many other things on his mind. “Most of the coaches I’ve worked with don’t like it when you deal with anything other than football.” Jürgen Klopp was an exception during his time in Mainz. “It takes human size to understand that football isn’t everything, that players are individuals and that everyone can be different. That sounds easy, but I’ve experienced a lot of taunts from other, worse coaches. That once again illustrates the greatness of Klopp.”
He hopes that in the future more and more footballers will take on social responsibility and help other people thanks to their financial means. But: “Anyone who does something like this for the wrong reasons should please let it be. You have to be convinced of your cause.” In an international comparison, Germany is in a pretty bad position. “Especially in the American professional leagues, the players are far more present and committed.”